Port Arthur's Bun B talks about final recording with Pimp C

JOEY GUERRA

Published 12:00 am, Monday, March 30, 2009

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Band mate Bun B arrives for the funeral of rapper Pimp C, Thursday, Dec. 13, 2007 in Port Arthur, Texas. Officials said the rapper, whose real name was Chad Butler, apparently died in bed and there were no signs of foul play. Autopsy and toxicology results weren't yet available. (AP Photo/Pat Sullivan) less

Band mate Bun B arrives for the funeral of rapper Pimp C, Thursday, Dec. 13, 2007 in Port Arthur, Texas. Officials said the rapper, whose real name was Chad Butler, apparently died in bed and there were no ... more

Port Arthur's Bun B talks about final recording with Pimp C

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Bun B details a specific set of goals for UGK 4 Life, his final recording with the late Pimp C. He hopes the record, released today, will "solidify the UGK foundation for people." He wanted to make sure fans "got the real Bun and Pimp" from top to bottom.

"People needed to hear the UGK they were used to, the way they were used to hearing it," Bun says.

That meant no head-scratching superstar appearances.

"Pharrell (Williams of the Neptunes) is a really good friend who really wanted to contribute to this album. We were concerned with it fitting in sonically. You don't just do things just because you can," Bun says. "And I didn't want it to seem like I was taking advantage of the situation by working with people that I wanted to work with.

"People have been down long enough with UGK to know what a sincere effort from us is. At this stage in the game, this wasn't the time to be trying to phone it in."

UGK 4 Life is anything but a sluggish effort. The disc's 12 tunes are sturdy Southern anthems, built around the yin-yang dynamic of Bun B and Pimp C. There are a few guests (R&B singers Raheem Devaughn and Akon), but most of UGK 4 Life is filled out with longtime friends, including Lil Boosie, Webbie, E-40, Sleepy Brown and 8 Ball & MJG.

Bun (aka Bernard Freeman) says Pimp (Chad Butler) always wanted the group to advance the sound of Southern hip-hop."UGK was his baby, and he devoted a lot of time to raising his kid right," he says.

UGK rose out of Port Arthur and over the course of two decades was a dominating presence on the Southern rap scene. The duo released its first major-label album, Too Hard To Swallow, in 1992 and broke through in a big way UGK1999's Ridin' Dirty. UGK was also featured on Jay-Z's Big Pimpin', a big boost to the pair's national profile.

Things stalled when Pimp C was jailed in 2002. Bun B continued as a solo artist, releasingTrill in 2005. That period affected the duo's work ethic in the future.

"We didn't want to find ourselves in a situation like after his incarceration, where we were left with not too much work in the can," Bun says. "By not having music, he wasn't really able to earn income - as much as he would have liked to. He wanted to work for his."

The double-disc Underground Kingz debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 album chart in 2007. After years of small successes UGK had become rap royalty. It didn't last long. Pimp C died in December 2007, the result of sleep apnea and an accidental overdose of cough syrup.

UGK 4 Life was recorded just after the Underground Kingz sessions, and Bun looks back fondly on their last moments of music-making.

"To me, it's more enjoyable to listen to this music. It's a unique experience, to say the least," he says.

"People would think that it would be the music that really would stir up emotions. But that was really only at the beginning. It's more regular, everyday-type stuff that, as they say, hits you where it hurts. We really don't have him anymore to talk to us and really tell it like it needs to be told."

UGK's story may have closed, but there's still more music on the way. Next up is a Pimp C solo album, followed by Trill OG, Bun's follow-up to last year's II Trill.

But don't expect rehashed remixes, posthumous duets or reality-show searches for a new member.

But don't expect rehashed remixes, posthumous duets or reality-show searches for a new member.

"I'm not going to be recording as UGK by myself or with other people. This is the last album as far as UGK is concerned," Bun says.

"The music doesn't really matter to me. I'd give it all back if I could have my friend back. We just want to make sure that he's honored the right way. Very few people cared about things the way that Pimp cared about music."